By: Mackenzie Wright | August 8, 2019

A Texas mom who had been shopping with her young children didn't think much when the couple waiting in line in front of her began chatting, but then she heard a phrase that sent chills down her spine. She believes her child was in danger, and she's warning other parents to watch out for strangers.

Longview mom Amanda Cropsey Florczykowski was at the store with her children. Her toddler was sitting in the cart with her and the family finished grabbing the groceries, then the mom headed to the check-out line.

That's when another couple in line in front of her struck up a conversation. It seemed very normal at first, but took a turn.

Florczykowski says it started as 'the typical conversation about how cute your daughter is'. The couple asked her age several times, and Florczykowski began hearing her internal alarms going off.

"I quickly became uncomfortable with the woman's body language and close proximity to my cart/kids. I picked my daughter up only to have the woman ask if she could hold her."

"The woman was so close at this point that my toddler reached her arms around the woman before I could really respond."

The mommy senses were really tingling by now, but like most people Florczykowski downplayed them. She didn't want to be rude or cause a scene, but she definitely felt as though her space, and her privacy, had been invaded.

When Florczykowski got up to the register, things only got worse. "In an instant her proximity finally changed and she backed away," Amanda wrote in an account on Facebook.

"I grabbed back on to my daughter as the woman was saying, "Say bye to mommy" - what an unusual comment to provoke a child to say. The woman resisted returning her when I physically pulled my daughter from her arms."

That’s when Florczykowski realized the couple wasn't alone. There was another man lurking around, acting dubiously, who appeared to be with the couple.

"After this couple left, I was really shaken up but still noticed the man a few feet away in my peripheral vision, continuing to stand, by himself, with no groceries, in a closed check-out lane. He faced the opposite direction, but was looking over his shoulder at me," she says.

"His eyes did not leave my every move ... I loudly conversed with the cashier about their security staff and the odd couple that seemed predatory."

The cashier even noticed how intrusive the couple had been; the cashier initially thought the couple were with the family.

Florczykowski hurried back to her car, keeping her kids close, and hurried home. She jumped online to do some research to see if there had been other local kidnappings lately.

She was shocked by the kinds of things she found.

"I've since researched sex-trafficking and some details were precisely my experience. I want to recount those specifics to create awareness in hopes that you can protect your own children," she said.

The mom has advice for other parents: don't let your guard down, even when you feel you're in a safe place. It's easy to get swept up in your everyday routine and get distracted, but that's exactly the opportunity on which predators are waiting to pounce.

"The thought of what could have happened is sickening. I'm just like you; a mom and I hope my experience helps you to be, not fearful, but cautious!" she said.